IRB News Regarding the Economic Stimulus Package and How to Expedite Your Proposal
A number of faculty with grant proposals that received high marks in recent reviews but were not funded are now receiving notice that the agency is ready to fund the proposals as a result of the stimulus package. When the research involves human subjects, the agency typically cannot release the funds without Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval of the research. In most of these cases, the principal investigator (PI) had not anticipated the funding, did not intend to do the research without funding, and therefore did not (and did not have to) submit an application to the IRB for review. Now he or she does, and is under a great deal of time pressure to submit the application and obtain IRB approval in order to accept the funding. We are sending this notice to let you know that the IRBs are taking a number of steps to move the review process along as quickly as possible. You, as the PI, can help us with this. Below are some factors that we believe will allow us to meet the increased demand better and facilitate your ability to receive the funding.
1. If you have a project that you believe is likely to get funding soon, do not wait until contacted by the agency to file with the IRB. Submit an application now. The loss of time and effort (yours and ours) if the project is not funded is, most likely, less costly than the cost of waiting.
2. One of the items on the IRB application (Question 7) asks if the proposal is funded and, if so, the name of the agency funding it. Respond with “funding pending”. Also indicate that it is likely to receive stimulus package funding. With such information, the office can tag the proposal so as to try to move it along quickly. Finally, as soon as you learn that your project is to be funded, contact the IRB office (517-355-2180). If the project is still under review, the status of the funding source can be changed. If the project was approved, you can file a simple Revision form (see web application system). The revision can be handled quickly. We will notify reviewers of protocols for which time is critical.
3. Monitor your review closely. Check the web daily for comments that may have been made by reviewers. Do not wait to receive an e-mail notification from the IRB. If no comments or actions have occurred for several days, check with the IRB staff. Whenever there is a comment in the system for you, respond to it quickly. If you do not understand what is being asked, call the IRB staff at 517-355-2180 and ask them to explain the process.
Thank you in advance for your help and let us know if there are ways we may be able to facilitate your ability to capitalize on the current opportunity.
Daniel R. Ilgen, Ph.D. & Ashir Kumar, M.D.
Daniel R. Ilgen, Ph.D.
Acting Chair, SIRB
John A. Hannah Distinguished Professor Emeritus
Department of Psychology & Management
IRB Contact Information
202
Olds Hall,
Phone: 517-355-2180
/ Fax: 517-432-4503 /
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